The referral decision scale with mentally disordered inmates

Correctional facilities are increasingly burdened with mentally disordered offenders and are faced with the formidable task of effectively screening inmates for major mental disorders and suicide potential. Teplin and Swartz (1989) developed the Referral Decision Scale (RDS) as a rapid screen for schizophrenia and major mood disorders in jail populations. However, more recent research by Hart, Roesch, Corrado, and Cox (1993) has called into question the effectiveness of the RDS. In this study, we examined the convergent and discriminant validity of the RDS with the Schedule of Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia—Change Version (SADS-C) and the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI) on a sample of 108 mentally disordered inmates. The RDS provided moderate evidence of convergent validity but failed to demonstrate acceptable discriminant validity, because of high intercorrelations on RDS subscales (heterotrait-monomethod coefficients). In comparison, the SADS-C yielded similar evidence of convergent validity and excellent discriminant validity.The authors would like to thank the Research Opportunities Program, University of North Texas for its grant support and Captain James Moore for his active cooperation.Tarrant County Mental Health and Mental Retardation Services.     

Reliability and validity of the SCL-90-R PTSD subscale

Two studies examined the psychometric properties of the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) subscale of the SCL-90-R. Study 1 examined SCL-90-R responses from 2,361 college women to determine whether this subscale can appropriately assess the three dimensions of PTSD. Factor analysis and Cronbach's alpha suggest that this subscale is best conceptualized as a unidimensional index of PTSD symptomatology. Study 2 confirmed these results in a sample of 1,044 college men and women. Findings in the second sample also supported the subscale's validity, as it correlates well with the Posttraumatic Diagnostic Scale and with trauma frequency and can discriminate between individuals with and without PTSD diagnoses. Results suggest that the SCL-90-R PTSD subscale is a reliable, but unidimensional, measure for screening for distress associated with PTSD. Although there is some support for the usefulness of this scale, especially with women, it should only be considered a general indicator of distress with limited use for men.     

Construct validity,reliability and predictive validity of the dynamic risk assessment and management system (DRAMS) in offenders with intellectual disability

Background. There have been a number of developments in the assessment of dynamic risk in the criminological literature. The dynamic risk assessment and management system (DRAMS) has been developed to facilitate the measurement of dynamic factors of risk for offenders with intellectual disability. Method. The study was designed to assess the construct validity, reliability and predictive utility of the DRAMS in 23 male forensic patients in a high secure setting. Predictions were made against independently collected incident data. Concurrent validity was assessed against the Ward Anger Rating Scale (WARS). Results. A reformulation of the individual section variables according to convergent and discriminant correlational analysis revealed Cronbach's alpha levels of >.8 for all sections apart from mood (alpha .750) and items retained to facilitate clinical information (alpha ?.017). Two hundred pairs of WARS and DRAMS assessments revealed orderly sectional correlations. The sections of mood, antisocial behaviour, and intolerance/agreeableness predicted incidents with a medium effect size as did total DRAMS score. There were highly significant differences between assessments taken 1 or 2 days prior to an incident and control assessments conducted at least 7 days from an incident. Conclusions. The reformulated DRAMS has good construct and concurrent validity. It appears to be a reliable assessment tool and informs on risk levels relating to stable and acute proximal factors. It appears as an important addition to the utility of risk assessments for this population.     

Adaptation of the Basic Empathy Scale among a Portuguese sample of incarcerated juvenile offenders

The main aim of the present study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Basic Empathy Scale (BES) and of its adapted short version among a forensic sample of incarcerated male juvenile offenders (N = 221). The Portuguese validations of the BES and its adapted short version demonstrated good psychometric properties, namely in terms of the two-factor structure, internal consistency, convergent validity, discriminant validity, and concurrent validity that generally justifies its use among this population. Statistically significant associations were found with callous–unemotional traits and social anxiety. Findings are discussed in terms of the use of the BES and its adapted short version with juvenile offenders.     

精神病人限定刑事责任能力评定量表信效度多中心研究

目的对自行研制的《精神病人限定刑事责任能力评定量表》的信效度进行多中心研究。方法：在国内四地七家精神疾病司法鉴定机构取样,对被评定为限定责任能力的案例按量表手册进行评分,并与各中心鉴定专家按辨认能力和控制能力受损大小将限定刑事责任能力所作的三级划分进行比较。结果共纳入702例案例,根据专家意见限定责任能力分为三级：小部分责任能力组、部分责任能力组和大部分责任能力组。小部分、部分和大部分组量表均分分别为21.32±3.85、25.91±5.69和29.54±5.19,差异具有统计学意义;量表各条目与总分相关系数在0.27～0.61之间,再测信度为0.85,评分者一致性kappa在0.5～0.91之间;主成分分析提取六个因子,累积贡献率为67.26%,主要反映被鉴定人的作案预谋、作案动机、作案后的行为表现、反映精神疾病对被鉴定人自我状态和社会功能的影响、案发前被鉴定人面临的环境及其反应程度;判别分析显示,作案动机、对作案时间的选择性、作案后逃避责任、检验或审讯时伪装、对作案行为的罪错性认识、自知力损害和自控能力损害纳入判别式,回代正确率为62.3%。结论《精神病人刑事限定责任能力评定量表》构建合理,有较好的信效度。     

Elaborating on the Construct Validity of the Levenson Self-Report Psychopathy Scale in Incarcerated and Non-Incarcerated Samples

The Levenson Self-Report Psychopathy Scale (LSRP) is a promising, efficient measure of the psychopathic personality. Previous examinations of its latent structure have yielded inconsistent results; therefore, the goal of the current study was to evaluate previously reported two- and three-factor models in three separate groups of male correctional inmates (n = 573), male college students (n = 202), and female college students (n = 200). Confirmatory factor analyses revealed that the best-fitting model across all the three groups was the three-factor model proposed by Brinkley et al. (Assessment 15:464–482, 2008). The convergent and discriminant validity of this three-factor structure as well as a revised 19-item total score were elaborated on in terms of predicting scores on conceptually relevant external criteria. The LSRP total and factor scales evidenced good convergent and discriminant validity with a few notable exceptions. Implications for theory and future research are discussed.     

Psychometric properties of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale version 11 among a Portuguese sample of incarcerated juvenile offenders

The aim of the present study was to examine the psychometric properties of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale version 11 (BIS-11) among a forensic sample of incarcerated male juvenile offenders (N?=?221). Principal Component Analysis with Promax rotation revealed the expected 6-factor structure, but Confirmatory Factor Analysis of the 6-factor first-order and the 3-factor second-order factorial structures did not present sufficiently good fits. Despite that, the Portuguese adaptation of the BIS-11 demonstrated generally acceptable psychometric properties in terms of internal consistency, mean inter-item correlation, convergent validity, discriminant validity, and concurrent validity that justifies its use among the youth forensic population. Statistically significant associations were found with age of crime onset, conduct disorder, crime seriousness, alcohol use and drug use.     

Development and Initial Validation of the Miranda Vocabulary Scale

Miranda vocabulary forms the essential foundation for Miranda comprehension and subsequent decisions to exercise or waive Miranda rights. The purpose of the current study is the development of the Miranda Vocabulary Scale (MVS), designed to evaluate key vocabulary words found in Miranda warnings and waivers across American jurisdictions. A preliminary list of MVS words was refined by expert ratings and by each word’s discriminability between failed and good Miranda comprehension. Miranda and other measures were collected at multiple sites on 376 pretrial defendants. With further refinements, the MVS is composed of 36 words with excellent scale homogeneity and interrater reliability (r = .99). It also demonstrated good convergent and discriminant validity for cognitive abilities and psychological impairment.     

The Spousal Assault Risk Assessment (SARA) Guide: Reliability and Validity in Adult Male Offenders

We evaluated the reliability and validity of judgments concerning risk for violence made using the Spousal Assault Risk Assessment Guide (SARA; Kropp, Hart, Webster, & Eaves, 1994, 1995, 1998). We analyzed SARA ratings in six samples of adult male offenders (total N = 2681). The distribution of ratings indicated that offenders were quite heterogeneous with respect to the presence of individual risk factors and to overall perceived risk. Structural analyses of the risk factors indicated moderate levels of internal consistency and item homogeneity. Interrater reliability was high for judgments concerning the presence of individual risk factors and for overall perceived risk. SARA ratings significantly discriminated between offenders with and without a history of spousal violence in one sample, and between recidivistic and nonrecidivistic spousal assaulters in another. Finally, SARA ratings showed good convergent and discriminant validity with respect to other measures related to risk for general and violent criminality.     

Procedural Justice and Police Legitimacy: A Test of Measurement and Structure

The procedural justice theory of police legitimacy has received substantial empirical support, yet too little attention has been paid to the operationalization and measurement of these important theoretical constructs. In particular, it is unclear whether the items used to represent procedural justice and police legitimacy possess convergent and discriminant validity. The current study uses confirmatory factor analysis to test for the measurement properties of these constructs and expands upon prior research by also including a measure of encounter-based procedural justice in addition to a scale tapping into global beliefs. The results provide mixed support for discriminant and convergent validity between legitimacy and global procedural justice. Full structural equation models test an alternative specification of one of the popular measurement methods for legitimacy, and compare the relative impact of each type of procedural justice. The findings indicate that while specific procedural justice predicts legitimacy, global procedural justice has a stronger influence. Implications for measurement and police policy are discussed.     

Abuse behavior inventory: cutpoint, validity, and characterization of discrepancies

This study determines a clinical cutting score for the 29-item Abuse Behavior Inventory (ABI) developed by Shepard and Campbell (1992) to measure both physical and psychological abuse experiences. The authors report on a sample of 392 White and African American women from primary care waiting rooms, who completed the ABI and the revised Conflict Tactics Scale (CTS2). An ABI cutoff score of 10 maximizes validity and produces a sensitivity of 77% and a specificity of 81% compared to the CTS2. Cronbach's alpha is .92 for the entire scale, .91 for the psychological subscale, and .86 for the physical subscale. Correlation between the ABI and CTS2 is .76, with subscale correlations of .74 between ABI psychological and CTS2 verbal aggression, and .71 between ABI physical and CTS2 physical aggression, injury, and sexual coercion.     

GUIDELINES FOR UTILIZING COLLATERAL SOURCES OF INFORMATION IN CHILD CUSTODY EVALUATIONS

A structure for utilizing third party or collateral sources of information in the child custody evaluation is discussed. Collateral information is vital to the process of trying to assess the credibility and validity of information obtained from the primary parties in a dispute. Information that is from more neutral parties has higher credibility and when the party has access to key information it produces more discriminant validity. When a source with high discriminant validity agrees with information from a primary party, then it enhances the convergent validity on an issue or hypothesis. Child custody cases are inherently characterized by biased data within the adversarial process. Gathering data from collateral sources and using a system to evaluate their usefulness on confirmation of hypotheses is a necessary part of the emerging forensic-clinical-scientific child custody evaluation paradigm.     

The Timeline Followback Spousal Violence Interview to Assess Physical Aggression Between Intimate Partners: Reliability and Validity

The psychometric properties of the Timeline Followback Spousal Violence interview (TLFB-SV), a calendar method used to assess daily patterns and frequency of spousal violence, were evaluated. Men (N = 104) entering a spousal violence treatment program, along with their female partners, were interviewed with the TLFB-SV at pretreatment, posttreatment, and quarterly thereafter for 1 year and asked to identify days of male-to-female and female-to-male physical aggression that had occurred between them. For posttreatment and follow-up interviews, participants maintained a weekly diary, in which they catalogued the days on which acts of spousal violence occurred. The subscale scores derived from the TLFB-SV, the proportion of days of any violence, and proportion of days of severe violence for each partner were calculated for each assessment interval. The TLFB-SV subscales had excellent temporal stability and concurrent and discriminant validity. Interpartner agreement on TLFB-SV subscale scores and agreement between partners on days when spousal violence occurred was low at pretreatment, but was high for the other assessment periods.     

Collateral report of psychopathy: convergent and divergent validity of the psychopathic personality inventory-short form

Psychopathy is a personality syndrome comprised of interpersonal, affective, and behavioral features that has emerged as a correlate of intimate partner violence perpetration. One commonly used self-report measure of psychopathy is the Psychopathic Personality Inventory-Short Form (PPI-SF). The current study employed a multi-trait, multi-method approach to test convergent and discriminant validity of the measure in partner-violent couples by comparing males’ self-report of psychopathy to the informant report of their female partner (N = 114). It was hypothesized that the female partner report of the male’s psychopathy would be highly correlated with the male report of his own psychopathy, thus providing evidence for the construct validity and interrater reliability of the PPI-SF. Analyses found that male and female reports were correlated significantly on the two major factors of the PPI-SF. Furthermore, the female report explained a significant amount of variance over and above men’s self-report on PAI scales designed to indicate antisocial personality traits.     

Spanish Validation of the Brief Child Abuse Potential Inventory (BCAP)

The Child Abuse Potential Inventory (CAP) is a widely used instrument to assess the potential for child abuse. The brief version of the CAP (BCAP) is a proven time-efficient screener tool. This investigation aims to propose a Spanish BCAP version by analyzing the factor structure of its Abuse Scale (aim 1) and, if needed, developing a valid BCAP Lie Scale (aim 2). Study 1 comprised 205 mothers with problems coping with their children’s behavior recruited from family support and treatment programs. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), internal consistency, and convergent validity were conducted. Study 2 applied an experimental between-subject design to assess a convenience sample of the Spanish population (N?=?260) with 124 participants in Condition 1 (honest) and 136 in Condition 2 (lie). Differences between conditions were analyzed. Study 1: CFA showed adequate fit indices for the seven-factor model (RMSEA?=?.04 CFI?=?.98, TLI?=?.98). Internal consistency and convergent validity were adequate for the Abuse Scale. Findings also showed that the BCAP Lie Scale does not accomplish the main requirements to detect participants answering in a socially desirable way. Study 2: A new set of six items showing significant differences between conditions (U =?15,481.00, z =?11.14, p <?.001, r =?.77) is proposed to compose the Lie Scale. The findings support that the Spanish BCAP is a valid instrument to assess mothers recruited from Child Protection Services. The new BCAP Lie Scale could be useful to select valid inventories. Further research with more representative samples is recommended.

     

The Convergent and Discriminant Validity of Procedural Justice and Police Legitimacy: An Empirical Test of Core Theoretical Propositions

Purpose

Procedural justice and police legitimacy have been recognized as important antecedents to people's willingness to cooperate with police officers and obey the law. What existing literature lacks, however, is a thorough psychometric examination of procedural justice and police legitimacy with respect to convergent and discriminant validity.

Methods

The present study employs confirmatory factor analysis to examine convergent and discriminant validity and ordinary least squares regression to assess whether revised scales operate similarly to ones used in past research.

Results

Results suggest that the legitimacy construct is not internally consistent and that one of its subscales loads with the procedural justice items to form a single scale composed of both procedural justice and legitimacy items. Regression analyses indicate that the modified measures operate similarly to traditional ones.

Conclusion

It is urged that researchers pursue the theoretical and empirical development of procedural justice and police legitimacy in order to further the study of the normative model of policing.     

Adaptation of the Narcissistic Personality Inventory among a Portuguese sample of incarcerated juvenile offenders

The aim of the present study was to assess the psychometric properties of the Narcissistic Personality Inventory (NPI) and two of its short forms (NPI-16 and NPI-13) among a Portuguese sample of male incarcerated juvenile offenders (N?=?221). Of these, only the NPI-13 short version demonstrated a good fit in terms of its factor structure. The NPI-13 also showed promising psychometric properties in terms of its internal consistency, convergent validity, discriminant validity, and criterion-related validity. Statistically significant associations were found with age of crime onset, crime seriousness, conduct disorder symptoms, alcohol abuse, and cannabis use. These findings justify the use of the NPI-13, especially its Entitlement/Exploitativeness dimension, among incarcerated male youths.     

Malingered Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and the Effect of Direct Versus Indirect Trauma Exposure on Symptom Profiles and Detectability

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is arguably prone to malingering due to its subjective and heterogeneous nature. Various factors can influence PTSD symptom profiles including trauma type and trauma exposure. However, it is unknown whether trauma exposure influences malingered PTSD symptom profiles. We used a malingering simulation design with trauma type controlled to compare (1) PTSD symptom profiles (Posttraumatic Stress Checliklist-5; PCL-5) at the syndrome, symptom cluster, and individual symptom levels and (2) symptom validity profiles (Structured Inventory of Malingered Symptomatology; SIMS) at the overall and subscale level, as a function of direct and indirect trauma exposure. Seventy-three participants were randomly assigned to either the direct (“witnessed” trauma) or indirect (“learned about” trauma) condition. Participants were coached about symptoms and instructed to simulate PTSD. PCL-5 profile analyses revealed that simulators in the direct exposure group reported greater overall PTSD severity. Significant differences were found on cluster D (changes in cognition and mood) and individual symptoms including intrusive thoughts, amnesia, difficulty experiencing positive emotions, and risk-taking. No differences were identified for any other symptom scores nor for the symptom validity profile, except for the SIMS total score (direct: M?=?33.0, SD?=?12.8, indirect: M?=?26.5, SD?=?13.9, t(71)?=?2.06, p?=?.043, d?=?.48). These findings indicate that trauma exposure can influence malingered PTSD profiles at the syndrome, symptom cluster, and individual symptom levels (small effects), but, with one exception for a summary score, it does not produce a detectable difference on symptom validity testing. This study may provide insight for clinicians into the how malingered PTSD profiles can manifest as a result of direct and indirect trauma exposure; however, further research is strongly indicated.     

Dispositional Sensitivity to Befallen Injustice

Dispositional Sensitivity to Befallen Injustice (SBI) is proposed as a new construct. A self-report questionnaire with four types of indicators (frequency, intensity of anger, intrusiveness of thoughts, punitivity) was developed for measuring SBI. Using structural equation modeling and the general rationale of multitrait-multimethod analysis, the convergent and discriminant validity of this questionnaire was investigated vis-à-vis measures for Trait Anger, Anger In, Anger Out, and Frustration Tolerance as related constructs. Additionally, a meaningful pattern of correlations was obtained between SBI and Life Satisfaction, Centrality of Justice, Interpersonal Trust, and Need for Control. Finally, self-reported sensitivity to befallen injustice was found to predict cognitive, emotional, and behavioral reactions to unjust treatment in laboratory and natural settings several weeks later.